1st essay for CORC 3109 Class

1st essay for CORC 3109 Class

Creation and Destruction Intertwined Together

What connections can be observed between acts of creation and acts of destruction? In what ways does creation result in destruction, and vice versa? What contrasts can be found in how creation and destruction are described in these texts? What similarities?

Thesis: Creation and destruction are two sides of the same coin, both are linked permanently together.

Intro.

• Greek Mythology of Creation – Forming of Gods and environment
• Greek Mythology of Destruction – Battle and violence
• 1^st might not look same, but are always in pairs
• Thesis

Creation #1

• 1^st Present: Chasm (Chaos), Gaia (Earth), Eros (Love) à Main focus on Titans
• Creation of Ouranos (Heaven), Mountains, Sea à Gaia + Ouranos à Titans
• Epithets – positive “lovely Tethys” and “proud-hearted Cyclopes”

Destruction #1

• Ouranos loaths the power of his children à hides them away in a cave
•  Destruction of Ouranos’s genitals by Kronos – Theogony (8)
•  Loss reproduction à Not possible to procreate anymore
• Removal of Ouranos’s power

Creation #2

• Present: Titans à Kronos + Rhea
• Creation of Olympians à Zeus, Hades, Hestia, Demeter, and co.

Destruction #2

• Destruction of Titans à Titanomachy

Creation + Destruction #3

• Present: Olympians – Zeus all powerful
• Creation of Civilization à Prometheus giving humans fire

Destruction #3

• Destruction of Prometheus and Humans à Prometheus bound, Pandora
• Cycles of creation & destruction à Two together = Creation + Destruction (figurative)

            Greek mythology is full various stories ranging from comedy to tragedy. Present in all stories are the acts of creation and destruction. Creation, taken literally, can refer to the birth of Gods and creatures. However, acts of creation can also pertain to the formation of a higher order. Creation is usually illustrated with a positive tint and places more value in beauty and strength. Destruction is similar to creation in the aspect of broad application. Destruction can refer to the complete ruin of person or be used in a more figurative sense. Both are always present together as they are two sides of the same coin. Works that demonstrate this recurrent theme are Theogony, Works and Days by Hesiod and Prometheus Bound by Aeschylus.  Through these pieces of literature we see the cyclic rise and fall of power. The original Gods of the world were toppled by the Titans, who were in turn toppled by the Olympians. From there, Prometheus allowed mankind to rise to new heights only for both parties to be repressed by the old order.

            The creation and destruction duo were present since the beginning of the Universe. First to arrive on the scene of existence was Chasm, who was quickly followed by Gaia and Eros. Created from Gaia was Ouranos who bedded with his mother to give birth to the Titans and Cyclopes. The Titans and Cyclopes are the results of creation and the source of destruction for the first generation of Gods. They are all described with positive epithets such as “lovely” or “stern of spirit,” casting them as beautiful and strong compared to their father Ouranos (Theogony, 7). The one exception is Kronos. His epithet of “crooked-schemer” portrays him in a negative light and is an indicator of his future role of usurper against his “lusty father” (Theogony, 7). Particularly foreboding is Kronos’s hatred against his father for imprisoning the Titans, something that he will repeat during his rule.

            Destruction of Ouranos is through a combination of violence and loss of fertility. The physical act of destruction is the castration of Ouranos by Kronos, described rather causally in one sentence by Hesiod “with his right … quickly cut off his father’s genitals, and flung them to fly where they might” (Theogony, 8). Ouranos rages over the loss of his manhood, gives his sons and daughters the name “Titans.” Aside from being physically disfigured Ouranos has also lost the power to procreate. The ability to generate children was what enable him the wonders of creation. Even though he still survives after the castration he is now ruined and dethroned. The cycle of creation and destruction has come full circle. A creation of the new generation is followed by the destruction of the old order.

            The creation of the Olympians from the union between Rhea and Kronos has a striking resemblance to the previous creation of the Titans by Gaia and Ouranos. The new children of Kronos are given impressive epithets such as “booming Shaker of Earth” and “the resourceful” (Theogony, 16). Of prime importance is Zeus who plays the role of a revolutionary taking on the established order. The contrast between the descriptions of Kronos and Zeus indicate future conflict. The “crooked-schemer” is to face against the “father of gods and men,” a clearly unbalanced match up in terms of narrative bias (Theogony, 7,16). In fact, how can Zeus claim to be the “father of gods” when Kronos fathered him? The only way to clear away this contradiction is for one side to destroy or dominate the other.

            Kronos, fearing a repeat of what happened to his father, quickly devours his children the moment they are born. Yet even he cannot escape from the cycle. The creation of Zeus, assures Kronos’s downfall. Hidden away by Rhea and cared for by Gaia, Zeus will lead a rebellion against the Titans. This epic form of destruction is on a completely different scale from the castration Ouranos. The conflict between Zeus and Kronos is a full-scale war between the Titans and the Olympians and is known as the Titanomachy. The war ends with the imprisonment of the Titans in Tartarus, a pit so deep that “for nine nights and days a bronze anvil might fall from earth, and on the tenth reach Tartarus” (Theogony, 24). At such a depth, Kronos and the Titans are physically trapped and unable to return to power. They are finished, doomed to remain there as long as the Olympians remain in power.

            With the Olympians now in power the next cycle of creation and destruction is set. Zeus had become a promiscuous king bearing multiple children with different wives. From the pattern of previous creation and destruction cycles a reasonable assumption is that one of Zeus’s children will overthrow him. Yet the predicted rebellion does not occur because of Zeus’s successful effort in warding off fate. Instead what is created in this perpetual cycle is human civilization. Prior to the advent of fire, humans remained ignorant in the ways of science and culture. They went on with their soulless lives in abject poverty and homelessness (Prometheus Bound, 639-651). Prometheus, witnessing the plight of humans, stole the sacred fire from Mount Olympus and delivered it to human beings. Along with the fire, Prometheus brought forth intelligence, blind hope, mathematics, literature, sailing, medicine and more. These discoveries formed the foundation for human culture (Prometheus Bound, lines 630-739). Human culture and knowledge are the basic building blocks of human civilization. Thus Prometheus is the savior of humanity and creator of all civilization.

            For all the greatness of human civilization, Prometheus is helpless against the dominance of the Olympian Gods. Although Prometheus was given amnesty during the Titanomachy for siding with the Olympians, the robbery of fire greatly angered Zeus. As punishment Prometheus was chained up to a rock face where everyday a bird would come to peck out his liver (Theogony, 18). The rise of humanity is linked to the destruction of Prometheus. Prometheus suffered a punishment worse than death. Not only is he imprisoned; he is to be repeatedly tortured every day for years to come. Bound by chains above the surface, he is stripped of his freedom and pride, becoming a visible spectacle for the fate of those who oppose Zeus. However, his destruction is but only the first part of the God’s punishment.

            Next to suffer was mankind for their newfound wealth and prosperity. Zeus, furious over the theft of fire, metered out punishment on both Prometheus and mankind. The punishment for mankind was a permanent one, the creation of women – “a calamity for men who live by bread” (Works and Days, 39). For women are required to reproduce the next generation, but are often sources of family strife due to gender relations. One woman in particular, named Pandora, released the evils and sins of mankind from the forbidden jar. While the destruction here is not evident in the short term, the long-term suffering is tremendous. Man is to be assailed with evils that plague him from birth. In addition, the presence of women leaves man with two options: to be married and troubled or to be unwedded and alone (Theogony, 21). Both options lead to the inevitable suffering of the heart and spirit.

            The works of Hesiod and Aeschylus have demonstrated the continuous cycle of creation and destruction present in Greek mythology. First, was the creation of Titans that was followed by the destruction of their father Ouranos. Next, was the destruction of the Titans as a result of the creation of Olympians. After the Titanomachy, came the creation of human civilization with the fire of Prometheus accompanied by the sufferings of both mankind and Prometheus at the hands of the Olympians. Whether of Gods or of man, creation was a guarantee of imminent danger to come. Destruction was the inescapable link to creation. The combination served as an unstoppable force change bringing forth rise and fall of kings, kingdoms, and men.